Air War in 2050 – The Future of 5th & 6th Gen Stealth Fighters, Drones, Helicopters

By Kris Osborn, President, Center for Military Modernization

AIR WAR in 2050 Series — 5th & 6th-Gen Stealth Fighters, Drones & Helicopters

(Washington, D.C.) The Air Force may wind up building several manned variants of the emerging 6th-Generation Next-Generation Air Dominance stealth fighter jet and a small family of wingman-type support drones as the cutting edge, yet largely secret aircraft program surges into the future.

Delivery Timelines and milestones are still likely in flux, yet one can likely expect accelerated development of the new aircraft, a demonstrator of which has already taken to the skies.

Described as a “family of systems,” NGAD will consist of a manned stealth fighter platform and a small number of multi-mission drones operated called Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) which will test enemy air defenses, blanket high-risk areas with forward surveillance and deliver weapons, with humans in a manned aircraft performing command and control.

Air Force Acquisition Executive Andrew Hunter said that the manned NGAD platform itself will likely emerge by the end of the decade and the CCAs will emerge much more quickly as nearer term items. Industry is already significantly invested with their R&D and preparing for a competition to build the new family of drones.

Video Above: Colonel Michael Stefanovic, Director of the Strategic Studies Institute for the Air Force sits down for an exclusive interview with Kris Osborn